Thursday, December 24, 2009

Well, today my copy of Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles finally arrived in the mail. Stupid mail ended up damaging the case partially, as if the package had been squashed in a mail sorting machine. USPS sucks!

Anyway, I've basically been playing it almost all day. I managed to finish the Resident Evil 2 portion of the game that has Claire Redfield & Leon Kennedy in it. It was really cool but still really tough even on normal mode. I died over ten times. At least I didn't chicken out for the Easy mode on the first playthrough of the game.

Definitely a game that you should be getting for Christmas, or soon after. And if you already have it, good job!

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

I finally received my copy of Zero: Tsukihami no Kamen, aka Fatal Frame 4: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse for the Wii. It shipped from Play-Asia on Nov. 27th, and it just arrived today...almost a whole month later! I was really angry that it took so long to arrive, but I guess I can let Play-Asia slide this time.

After all last year I ordered a game and it shipped on Dec. 12th, and it still arrived just before Christmas. The economy has grown very crummy and airmail shipments are significantly impacted with delays as there are fewer flights.

Anyway I played what I guess was the intro chapter (and I don't even know Japanese). I managed to use the camera obscura on the first ghost! I can't wait for the translation patch to be out so I can fully enjoy the game!

Monday, December 14, 2009

Well, Nintendo released their Quarter 1 list today, and it's lacking Sin & Punishment 2. Anyway, WarioWare DIY made a surprise appearance for a release on March 28th.

Nintendo also announced that two more colors of Wii Remotes that were recently released in Japan, will be heading to US stores on Valentine's Day (Feb. 14th). It will be bundled with a WiiMotionPlus accessory like the Black Wii Remote before it.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Various retailers such as Amazon.com & Gamefly are listing the game for February 22nd. I would say that it's probably confirmed, just have to wait for Nintendo to officially announce it. There is even a high quality final boxart:

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

SEGA set to take western gaming aficionados into the gritty underbelly of Japanese culture

SAN FRANCISCO & LONDON (December 8th, 2009) – SEGA® of America, Inc. and SEGA Europe Ltd. today announced that its Japanese smash hit Ryu ga Gotoku™ 3 will be officially localized for the west as Yakuza™ 3. Selling over half-a-million copies in Japan the game has established an ardent fan base in its native land and has achieved cult status with true videogame connoisseurs in the west. SEGA’s decision to bring the game to its western territories was heavily influenced by the recognition of Yakuza’s enthusiastic fan base throughout the U.S. and Europe. Yakuza 3 will be available exclusively on the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system in the spring of 2010.

The Yakuza series is the brainchild of Toshihiro Nagoshi, one of SEGA’s most prolific and successful internal developers. Along with the Yakuza saga, Toshihiro also created the beloved Super Monkey Ball series and has worked on other well known SEGA games such as Daytona USA, F-Zero GX, Spikeout. To this day Toshihiro still over-sees work of internal development teams to make sure his creations speak to gamers as he originally intended.

“Since its release in Japan, gamers in the west have wanted to know whether SEGA would be releasing Yakuza 3 in the west.” said Sean Ratcliffe, VP of Marketing, SEGA of America, Inc. “Today I’d like to tell all the Yakuza fans. We’ve heard you. We’re bringing it. Get ready for your initiation into the Japanese underworld!”

Yakuza 3 will feature full English subtitling, while retaining the outstanding voice acting from the original Japanese version of the game to create an authentic and immersive experience. The transition to the PlayStation 3 has allowed SEGA of Japan’s CS1 team to add an unprecedented level of environmental detail and realism to the game – a hallmark of the series that fans have come to expect. In this action-adventure sequel, players will take on the role of Kiryu Kazuma to explore rich and realistic environments, take part in a multitude of unique mini-games and experience the deepest combat experience in the series yet. In addition to the familiar Tokyo haunts from the first two games, fans will also discover a completely new setting on the tropical island of Okinawa where, accompanied by his adoptive daughter Haruka, Kazuma manages an orphanage. However, he is allowed no respite in this idyllic retreat and before long he is once again forced to deal with his sordid past.

For more information on Yakuza 3 please visit www.yakuza-games.com.

Yay, I knew it was gonna come to the US eventually, though I did lose hope at one point. Too many games coming out next year that I want >o

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

The wonder of ancient Greece comes to life on Jan. 18, when Glory of Heracles™ launches exclusively for the portable Nintendo DS™ and Nintendo DSi™ systems. The game marks the first in the popular Japanese Heracles series to launch in the United States.

The game is inspired by Greek mythology and written by Kazushige Nojima of Final Fantasy fame. The traditional role-playing game features an engrossing story and a robust battle system. Players can roam the countryside as they encounter new characters and gain experience, or they can visit familiar ancient settings like Athens and Sparta.

Although the plot is fictional, many of the people and places in the game are based on familiar Greek mythology. An extensive glossary provides more details about the places and characters that heroic Heracles encounters. Players will be treated to animated cut scenes on the screens of their Nintendo DS or Nintendo DSi systems.

Players can opt to use the stylus or control pad and buttons to control movement in the game, while the touch screen is required to complete optional challenges used to power up spells or skills during battle.

Finally, I was wondering when this game was coming to the US. We haven't heard nothing about it since E3 earlier this year. Glad to know another game series is finally leaving Japan.